Lycoming College is being sued for creating a climate tolerant and encouraging of sexual misconduct of female students, Penn Live reported.
The plaintiff – a female student identified just as Jane Doe and has since transferred schools – claims she “was sexually assaulted by a men’s basketball player in his dorm room two years ago,” Penn Live reported.
She alleges Lycoming of knowingly allowing the male athlete – identified as D.E. – to stay on campus and play basketball despite having a previous sexual assault allegation.
The alleged assault took place on Nov. 18, 2018, when D.E. went from kissing the victim to sexual assaulting her despite her multiple refusals. Doe said she did not later file a police report because Kate Hummel, associate dean of students/Title IX deputy coordinator, had told her there was no physical evidence to do anything with.
Lycoming’s subsequent Title IX investigation into D.E. concluded that D.E. “violated the sexual harassment-sexual misconduct policy.” The school required him to write a paper, attend a class and move out of the two students’ mutual dorm, Penn Live reported. However, D.E. “was allowed to remain at Lycoming and play basketball after missing one game.”
D.E. has had two other Title IX investigations about him, one ending in his suspension, Doe said.
In a statement, Lycoming said it has not seen the lawsuit and declined to comment on it at this time.